Here is a challenging prayer used in a collection by Kenneth Osborne.
“Set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray — while the world perishes, we go our way
Purposeless, passionless, day after day; set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray!”
— Unknown
Kenneth then wrote: “Vitality is essential to any Christian ministry; complacency is deadly. There must be the fervency of divine life infused into us by God the Holy Spirit. Just as the healthy vine manifests itself in producing foliage and fruit, so it is with a healthy Christian – he or she will bear evidence of an infectious enthusiasm for the furtherance of the gospel and a life that produces the fruits of the Spirit.”
“Set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray — while the world perishes, we go our way
Purposeless, passionless, day after day; set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray!”
Joni E. Tada wrote about Chuck, a forty-two year old man with Down Syndrome who once stood proudly in front of church and recited John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
He and his friends had come from a nearby group home that Sunday to help the congregation learn more about disabled people. Chuck boomed out the verse loud and clear, bowing when he finished. More than a few people laughed heartily.
That’s when Chuck stepped forward, stuck out his chest and insisted, “Don’t laugh. I mean it! I really believe it!”
It took people back. But Chuck made his point.
This wasn’t a fun game meant to entertain, and he wasn’t a trained seal doing tricks. He was a grown man with a mind and a will to choose. He believed the gift of eternal life was serious, offered to him through the solemn sacrifice of Jesus Christ. His defense of the gospel gave pause to the congregation.
“Set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray — while the world perishes, we go our way
Purposeless, passionless, day after day; set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray!”
Today, I pray….
Set us afire, Lord, stir us… help us realize the sin of our complacency.
We pray… help us to turn to you in confession and repentance.
While the world perishes… we see the news.
We go our way… yet we don’t respond.
Purposeless, passionless, day after day… it’s like our heads are buried in the sand.
Set us afire, Lord, stir us… remind us of who we are and Whom we serve.
We pray!
Like Chuck may we proudly know: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
May we be stirred by the fire of God’s Holy Spirit, today.
